The present invention relates to interactive toys, one toy, once activated by a user, activating another toy. More particularly, the present invention relates to a pair of toys which perform responsive actions or functions in continuous sequence. In a preferred embodiment a set of talking dolls are provided. The user activates one of the dolls to say a sentence. At the end of the sentence, the user-activated doll activates another doll to respond to the first sentence. Each doll may respond to the sentence of another doll until a conversation is complete.
Toys that are activated by a user to perform a desired function are known in the art. For example, a variety of dolls exist that perform a desired action, such as speaking or moving, when activated by a user. However, the doll typically only performs a single action (e.g., the doll says a single word or phrase, or moves in a desired manner) without saying anything more until the activation switch is pressed again. Thus, although several activation switches may be provided, each switch causing the doll to performed a desired action (e.g., say a specific word or phrase or move in a desired manner) associated with that switch, once the action is completed, the doll is idle. Only when the desired activation switch is pressed does the doll perform again. Such dolls need not be activated by a mechanically activated switch. Light-sensitive switches may be used instead of, or in addition to, a mechanical switch, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,281,180 to Lam et al.
The desired action need not be the enunciation of a speech pattern. Other toys are known that perform another action, such as moving or flashing lights, upon activation by the user. However, the above-described toys merely perform the single desired action or function in response to activation by a user. These toys do not then activate another device without further intervention from a user.
Despite the variety of known means for activating the toy to perform a desired action and the variety of actions that may be performed, none of the known toys causes another toy to respond with an action which may then cause the first activated toy (or yet another toy) to perform yet another, further-responsive, action (again, without further intervention by a user). Until now, the device used to activate another device has comprised a signal generator alone, such as a remote control unit, that does not perform an action (such as enunciation of a speech pattern) other than transmitting a signal. Thus, in effect, the only "toy" that is activated to perform a desired function is the toy controlled by the remote control device, the remote control device not performing an independent action. The toy which performs the desired action is not activated by another device that has performed a desired action. Moreover, a set of interactive toys which each perform a desired action in addition to transmitting a signal to another toy has not yet been provided with the capability of being programmed by an external, wireless control device such as a common household remote control unit which merely signals one of the toys to perform a desired action, that action then triggering a cascade of mutual activation and response.